partner-program: Cultivating Change
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Manila report of the Community of Practice on Farmer Managed Seed Systems
Ahead of the Farmers’ Rights Symposium in Manila, the Philippines, 14-15 September 2025, the first official meeting of the Community of Practice for Farmer-Managed Seed Systems (FMSS) took place. This report provides insight into the discussions that took place around an enabling policy environment for FMSS, with a focus on national seed policy and mechanisms, […]
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Olivia Biswas dreams of a sustainable community
“I am now a self-reliant woman.” Olivia Biswas made use of the Cultivating Change programme to become an independent farmer who can provide for her family. In Dingpara village of Rajshahi District, Olivia Biswas worked mainly as an agricultural wage laborer on other people’s land. The 35-year-old woman is part of an Indigenous community named […]
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Agata Soren claims her rights
Once Agata Soren saw government authorities as duty bearers to her and other smallholder women, her relationship with the local agricultural institutions changed. She actively claimed her rights and inspired other women to follow. This is a story about inclusive governance. Agata Soren, is a Bangladeshi farmer and an indigenous Santal woman belonging to the […]
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Oxfam Novib and McKnight present the Communities of Practice around Farmer Managed Seed Systems at GB11
The 11th Governing Body (GB) Session of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA, the Treaty) took place on the 24th – 29th November 2025, during which negotiations took place to discuss the draft text of the Treaty, including the key issues of conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic […]
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Oxfam’s reflections and position on the Multilateral System key points ahead of GB11
by Maya Piotrowska and Nout van der Vaart, Oxfam Novib Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (PGRFA) are the foundation of food production and food security. While farmers have played a key role in conserving and enhancing PRGFA to the benefit of their communities for over thousands of years, professional plant breeding companies have […]
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Meeting of the Community of Practice for Farmer-Managed Seed Systems 14 – 15 Sep 2025 (Manila, the Philippines)
On the 14th of September 2025, sixty individuals working on farmer-managed seed systems and local initiatives for agrobiodiversity came together in Manila, the Philippines, for a Knowledge Sharing and Network Building Workshop on Seed Policy and Practice. With support from the FAO Treaty (ITPGRFA) and the European Union, Oxfam Novib brought together thirty members of […]
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From Salty Soil to Green Fields: The Story of Alpona… The Woman Who Tamed the Storm and Became its Symbol
Alpona’s journey was far from easy, but her determination led her, in 2012, to the agro-biodiversity fair organized by BARCIK. There, she became part of the Cultivating Change program, which connected her with a supportive community of farmers. They guided her in accessing seeds and taught her organic farming techniques. Equipped with this knowledge, she […]
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Nutrition Strategy Publication
Given our positive results and overall success, we would like to share with you the valuable experience of our work on Local Food Plants for Nutrition, implemented during the second phase of the Sowing Diversity = Harvesting Security program (2019-2024). In this publication we detailed the strategy, explained the context, and presented the evaluation of […]
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When the Land Speaks Back: The Story of Two Farmers and a Movement Reclaiming Seeds, Soil, and Strength
In the heart of Uganda’s Soroti district, a quiet transformation is reshaping the future of farming. When the Land Speaks Back tells the story of two smallholder farmers: Alfred and Betty —who through the ChaChaWaWa initiative and the Sowing Diversity = Harvesting Security (SD=HS) program, now continuing under the Cultivating Change program— are turning soil, […]
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Zambia Alliance for Agroecology and Biodiversity
Zambia Alliance for Agroecology and Biodiversity!